Abstract

Until the IRA ceasefire in August 1994 Northern Ireland, which had just experienced its most severe year of violence in many years, seemed to have been a society unable to break out of its some 25-year cycle of violence which has claimed over 3,000 lives - a not inconsiderable toll in a population of 1.5 million. This situation appears to have changed now in light of the recent IRA ceasefire and the Joint Declaration of the Irish and British governments in Decemeber 1993. It is now the official policy of the British government that Northern Ireland may determine its own future within the limits of constitutional democracy. The Framework Document issued by the British and Irish governments on 22 February 1995 has provided a constitutional basis for the consolidation of peace. The principle of consent to secession will be enshrined for the first time in British Legislation. The most important provisions of the Framework Document are the creation of a new Northen Ireland Assembly with limited legislative powers, and end to the Republic's claims over Northern Ireland, a guarantee that the people of the province have the right to choose their own future in a referendum, increased cooperation between the Irish and British governments as well as the setting up of cross-border institutions.